Thursday, 5 December 2013

Going Ape with Go Ape

A good
few years ago (before Leo was even a twinkle in my eye)… I was invited along to
Go Ape. For those of you who have never heard of Go Ape, or are yet to actually
give it a go… Go Ape is essentially a adult climbing frame set amongst the
trees! They strap you up with a safety harness and then you are free to frolic
among the trees and ‘Go Ape’!

I
remember having an absolutely fantastic time, and it is something that has
always been at the forefront of my mind as I have always considered booking in
and swinging through the tree tops again. When we first visited it was the
middle of June and I re-call the weather being rather warm. So there we were in
our joggers and t-shirts definetly feeling the heat as we climbed, swang and
bounced around…

I was
recently invited back to Go Ape and asked if I would like to book in anytime
from the beginning of November until they close on the 8th December…
and I was rather excited to give it all another go. We are about an hour away
from Wyre Forest, which is actually the venue we first visited. Keeping
distance as the main factor in booking, we decided to return to Wyre Forest.

So this
weekend Luke and I booked in on the 11:00am session. Yes it was an awful lot
cooler than our first visit.. But we had wrapped up nice and warm for the cold
November day we had chosen.

We were
warmly greeted by George who signed us all in, and even managed to find a pair
of gloves for me to purchase. I don’t know what I would have done without those
gloves as the chill in the air even when we got moving got to my fingers.

George
kept the important safety bits clear and precise but still managed to keep the
element of fun with it all. Before we all got started he talked us through each
of the safety aspects and told us how to use all of the equipment, and then he
even demonstrated on the practice equipment so we could all see first hand what
to do.

It
wasn’t long before George was confident to free us into the wild, and then we
climbed up into the trees and commenced our Go Ape adventure.

Now I am
not one for heights, but I adore the entire Go Ape experience. What re-assures
me is knowing that I am securely strapped in at all times, and I know that as
long as I follow the rules then nothing too dreadful will happen. George was at
hand to shout any questions to and told us to just shout or blow the whistles
on our harnesses if we needed assistance. No one in our group needed rescuing
and it was apparent that everyone was having a brilliant time, the laughter
just kept on flowing.

It took
us a few hours to get around the entire course, and we made sure we did
EVERYTHING. We climbed up ladders (where I established I really need to work on
my upper body strength…) we swang down Zip Wires and I even braved the Tarzan
Swing! Well.. I would have done it myself had Luke not decided to give me a
less than loving push right off the edge. In fact he pushed me so hard that I literally
flew at full speed into the awaiting net the other side, sending my legs
straight through the holes!

We had an absolutely fantastic time climbing up rope ladders and zipping down zip wires, and having a few special moments on the Tarzan Swing! But all in all it was a super day out, maybe even more so because it was so cold, by the end I was toasty warm and ready to do another round!

If you are stuck for Christmas gifts this year, check out the Go Ape Gift Vouchers. You could gift an experience just like the one I have shared, or even go along for the fun too! Gift voucher denominations range from £5 right up to £60.

I will leave you with a little clip of our time at Go Ape so you can see for yourself just how much fun is to be had!

Disclaimer:I was provided with free entry to Go Ape in return for a honest review of my personal experience.